After making multiple visits to a property with a size, layout and price that all seemed "too good to be true" my client decided to make an offer. It wasn't until that point when it was disclosed to us that the property had been used as a meth lab and that cleanup of the property had not yet happened. In fact, it was being sold AS-IS, all cleanup and liability was being passed on to the buyer.
Well, now everything made more sense. But what bothered me most was that this information was not stated up front.
We probably spent over an hour in the house. What if my clients had brought an infant and let it crawl around on the floor that whole time? What if one of them had respiratory problems that were exacerbated by visiting the home? As far as we can tell, nobody was harmed by the experience, but we should have known about the hazardous condition before we went through the place, right?
I found some old posts on meth houses and methamphetamine remediation here on ActiveRain which I shared with my client.
Here are a few that may benefit some other people:
Identifying Meth Impacted Homes
REO and Meth Labs - Read This, It's Good
DEA Meth Lab Registry for homes that were used as meth labs - Did you know?
In every case where we have found properties that are WAY too good to be true... they are.
So, buyer beware!
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I'm surprised you couldn't smell it -- not an odor to be overlooked!
I'm surprised that it isn't mandatory for stigmas like that to be disclosed on the listing in your area.
That's a mandatory disclosure in our state. Not anything to be taken lightly.
Benjamin, your photos tell about 99% of the story. It's a killer either cooking it or using it. Thanks for the links!
This is EXCELLENT!!! I wish I would have had this information about a year ago. I have uploaded it onto our server for all of our agents to read! Thanks you soooo much for your thorough posting.
I didn't smell it. I don't know EXACTLY how bad it was. Maybe it wasn't that bad. Still, an up-front disclosure would have been nice.
Ben
How absolutely frightening; I never have had the chance to smell any Meth so I am in the dark of what it would smell like.
The listing agent would have entertained a face-to-face visit from me, where I would have read him/her the riot act.
We have duties to our sellers/buyers, but we must also have a conscience, a moral compass.
I have seen agents with no scruples run out of the business over lo these decades I've been around. It happens.
Had a seller/bank told me a meth lab was to be sold "as-is", I would have declined the listing, and reported them to the EPA.
Now, at this point, Gentle Reader, you might imagine me to be one of those idiots who sits around the office pontificating about the state of affairs, while selling nothing.
My team and I sell over 100 homes per year. We know that resale homes are USED HOMES with all their imperfections. There is no perfect house, and every home sold has its trade-offs.
What a terrible thing and such a terrible problem here in Iowa!
Yikes! Thanks for the education! I was afriad to click on the links....I could barely get past the pictures on this blog. Scary!
I cant get past those pictures. My town has a big meth problem and I just don't understand it, why would anyone willingly do that to themselves.